Aloha Joe
by Cristi0819
Summary: My version of the trip to Hawaii.  It does contain spoilers from 18.


Disclaimer: All characters are the property of Janet Evanovich. I wish I could sue her for abuse and neglect of Ranger, but alas, it's not meant to be.

A/N: Those of you who haven't read 18 yet may want to skip this FF for right now. I was most intrigued with the Hawaii trip in the book, but of course, JE gave us one paragraph only of the most interesting idea she had. This is my version. Special thanks to FairTaxGirl and Atlanta Babe for reviewing this for me. Please review…

Aloha Joe

I was on my way to Hawaii. Alone. I had asked Joe to go with me, but he couldn't get away from work. It was always work for him. I knew he had an important and stressful job, but he never once put me first. Never. Not once. Ranger on the other hand…

I wasn't very proud of my behavior over the past few weeks. I had reduced my feelings towards Ranger to pure lust and used the excuse of Grandma Bella's curse to be with him. I knew in my heart that it was an excuse, but I was so afraid of being hurt by him if I admitted any feelings that I just finally gave in to the lust and had a few amazing encounters with him. Ranger seemed to know that I was holding back emotionally and didn't push me. Honestly, I think I would've felt better if he had pushed me. I've never felt like a slut before, but flying across the country, looking out the window and thinking about my joke of a life, that's exactly what I felt like.

The flight was non-stop and I didn't manage to get any sleep. I was too depressed. I didn't want Morelli and I couldn't have Ranger. Neither of them would want me anymore after the way I behaved. What the hell was I thinking? Wait, I know the answer to that. I WASN'T thinking. I'd had amazing, mind-blowing sex with a man I'm in love with. I'd had so-so sex with the guy that I'm technically dating. I'm going to hell in a flaming hand basket.

We landed in Honolulu and I trudged through the airport, gathering my luggage and getting a cab to the hotel. The cab driver was nauseatingly friendly, but did help me with my luggage. It only took about 20 minutes to get to my hotel, which was about two blocks from the beach. Looking around the lobby as I walked in, I realized that I was in paradise and it was the last place in the world I wanted to be.

I wanted to be in a brick building in Trenton because on the 7th floor of that building was someone that I desperately needed to make things right with. I felt the back of my eyes burn as the tell-tale tears threatened to fall. I sighed and mentally shook myself. Stephanie Plum, you're in friggin Hawaii! Lighten the hell up!

I squared my shoulders and walked over to the reception desk. I gave the beautiful young Hawaiian woman my name and she typed it into the computer. She frowned at her screen and looked up at me. "I'm sorry, Ms. Plum, but your reservation was canceled about an hour ago."

No, no, no, no, no! Through gritted teeth I said, "I don't understand how that could have happened. I'm the only person staying in the room and I didn't cancel the reservation."

The clerk was now eyeing me warily as she typed into her computer. "Ma'am, I'm not sure who canceled the reservation, but it was canceled."

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. When I thought I had control of myself, I said, "I'm sure it was a mistake. I'll take another room and we can forget this ever happened."

The clerk got a look of dread on her face and I knew just what was coming. "Ma'am, I'm terribly sorry, but we don't have any more rooms."

I stood there for a moment, debating whether to cry or throttle this woman. When I had made up my mind, I noticed her gasp and look over my shoulder at something. At the same time, I felt a tingle starting at the base of my spine and radiating up to my neck. I shook it off as anger and was about to launch into my tirade against the clerk when a warm hand settled on the back of my neck. I froze, and then heard, "Problem, Babe?"

I turned my head slowly and looked into Ranger's beautiful dark eyes. I saw his lips twitch at my obvious shock at seeing him here.

"Um…" I said. I tried again with, "What….?" I couldn't form a coherent thought, much less a whole sentence. His lips twitched again and he looked at the clerk, saying, "Excuse us." She also seemed to be unable to form words, but did manage to nod. Ranger grabbed my hand and led me out of the hotel, to where a cab was waiting. He handed the driver an address and motioned me into the backseat, sliding in next to me.

Ranger busied himself looking straight ahead, while I stared openly at him. It was the first time in years I had seen him in something other than black. He had on faded jeans and a crisp, white button down shirt, with the sleeves rolled up showcasing his forearms. The white shirt was super white against his Mocha Latte skin and made his jet black hair seem even blacker. I'd never seen him look better. When my eyes finally found their way up to his face, though, it was a different story. Ranger looked…not haggard exactly, but tired. I'd never even seen him yawn, much less look physically tired. The set of his eyes showed it, but only someone who had spent a lot of time memorizing every detail of his face would have noticed. Looking at Ranger was one of my favorite past-times, so of course I noticed.

After driving for about 10 minutes, we pulled up to what looked to be the back of a house. Ranger paid the driver, got out and retrieved my bags and then took my hand, leading me into the house. We entered the house in the kitchen, which was small, but bright and airy. I looked over at Ranger and he nodded me further into the house. As I walked into the living room, I caught sight of the ocean beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows. The windows were open and I could smell the ocean air. I could almost taste the salt on my tongue, we were so close.

I looked over at Ranger and he stepped a little closer to me, saying, "I thought you might enjoy Hawaii better if you were staying in a beach house rather than an impersonal hotel."

I opened my mouth to say something, but stopped as soon as I felt the tears sliding down my face. This act of kindness from Ranger served to deepen my shame about my recent behavior. I should do us both a favor and move to Timbuktu so he can stop saving my ass all the time and concentrate on his actual work.

When I looked up at him, Ranger was watching me with a look of confusion on his face. I say confusion, it may have been constipation. Honestly, I'd never seen the look before. Ranger knows everything. He doesn't get confused.

He broke the silence by quietly asking, "Why are you crying?"

I didn't know how to explain my feelings for him, so I simply said, "Ranger, I'm sorry."

He stepped closer to me and brushed my hair out of my face and whispered, "What are you sorry for, Babe?"

I looked up into his concerned eyes and thought, this is my chance. I'll never get another opportunity like this to tell him how I feel. I thought about what I wanted to say while standing there gazing at him. Finally, I said, "I screwed up."

"How?" he asked.

"I broke the rules."

"What rules?" he asked.

My eyes welled up with more tears as I said, "I tried to shut off my emotions and just take what I wanted. I can't do it. I'm so ashamed that I can't stand myself right now."

I watched as Ranger's blank face slammed down. He took a step back from me and said, "You feel guilty because of Morelli." It wasn't a question.

I should have anticipated his reaction. After all, I'd never told him anything about my feelings or about my relationship with Morelli. "No, Ranger, I feel guilty because of the way I treated you."

"You're speaking in riddles, Babe." His face had relaxed somewhat, but he still looked guarded.

Taking a deep breath, I said, "I had sex with you and just walked away. I treated you like a one-night stand."

Ranger relaxed marginally and said, "Stephanie, it wasn't exactly what I expected, but it would be a little hypocritical of me to be angry with you over it. After all, I did the same thing a few years ago."

Before I could censor what was coming out of my mouth, I whispered, "But I wasn't in love with you then. I barely knew you."

Like a predator stalking his prey, Ranger stepped closer to me and put one hand on each side of my face, tilting my head up so that I couldn't look away from him. "Are you saying you're in love with me now?" he asked.

I couldn't breathe. I couldn't form words. I simply nodded. Ranger smiled. A real, honest smile and said, "Thank God. I was afraid it would take another three years to convince you."

I looked at him in wonder. Did this mean….?

Using his ESP, Ranger said softly, "Yes, it means I love you, too." He pulled me in closer and settled his mouth against mine. It was a gentle kiss that ended quickly. Raising his head to press his forehead to mine, he said "Before there's any confusion, I'll explain how this will work. We're together now. Morelli will not come between us. You can explain it to him, or I will. I'll leave it up to you. You're mine now, Babe. I've waited for you a long time and my control is slipping. Are these terms agreeable to you?"

His words had turned my brain to mush. The emotion showing in his eyes coupled with the kiss and his close proximity caused me to feel like I had lava flowing through my veins. I slowly nodded my head and said, "If I'm yours, then I think we need to seal this deal."

Ranger gave me a wolf grin as his lips crashed down on mine. I felt his hands move to my hips and bring me up flush against his hard body. His fingers moved to the zipper on my skirt as mine moved to the buttons on his shirt, desperate to feel his skin under my fingers. He moved his arms to allow me to slide the shirt off him and I moved my hands all over him, reveling in the feel of his stomach and chest and then sliding around to feel the muscles moving in his back. Ranger broke the kiss long enough to divest me of my shirt, leaving me standing in front of him in only my white, lacy bra and panties and sandals.

"You're beautiful, Babe."

I felt my face flush further and he pulled me into his arms and walked me backwards into the bedroom. He quickly divested himself of his shoes and jeans. No matter how many times I saw his body, it never failed to amaze me. Ranger should be sculpted by a wonderful artist, to be admired for all eternity.

He stepped up to me and reached around to unsnap my bra, letting it fall from my shoulders. He went down on one knee and took my shoes off and then hooked a finger on each side of my panties, pulling them to the floor, where he lifted one foot and then the other to remove them. Starting at my ankles, he ran his hands back up my legs, stopping at my thighs to push me gently onto the bed. As he opened my legs and took me into his mouth, I felt his hands reach up and stroke my breasts, lightly pinching the nipples as he simultaneously sucked my clit. I had no time to prepare before an orgasm ripped through me, leaving me screaming Ranger's name.

Unable to lift my head, I said, "Ranger, please, I need you inside me."

Ranger lifted me further onto the bed and settled himself on top of me. He looked at me with a tender expression and said, "Stephanie Plum, I love you." Before I could even think to respond, he pushed inside, filling me with one stroke. He took my mouth as he took my body, rocking gently in time with the thrusts of his tongue in my mouth. He moved from my mouth to my neck and was soon taking a nipple into his mouth, sucking it and biting down gently. Soon I was crying out as Ranger picked up the pace, causing him to apply just the right pressure to my clit. I felt myself explode and as I clenched him tightly, Ranger let out a guttural moan and spilled himself into me.

I was surprised to feel tears again, though for a much different reason. I couldn't seem to control them. Though Ranger and I had had sex before, this was so much different and so much more. Ranger rubbed a hand down the side of my face and on impulse I turned into his hand and placed a gentle kiss on it. He leaned down and peppered kisses along my face until the tears were gone. He then lay down beside me and pulled me over to lay my head on his chest.

I sighed in contentment and said, "I can't believe we're really here."

Ranger tightened his arm around me and said, "Believe it. We're only going forward from here. No more one step forward, two steps back."

I smiled and said, "I wouldn't want it any other way."

4 days later…

The time with Ranger had been wonderful. It had been difficult at first to get out of the bed, but eventually we did. Ranger took me on a helicopter tour of all the islands, as well as a tour of Pearl Harbor. We also spent a day on a private boat with a captain and small crew. It was amazing to see the marine life and the views of the islands from the water. It truly was paradise.

We only had two days left in Hawaii and I was alternately dreading and looking forward to getting back to real life. Our time in Hawaii had been wonderful. It was special because it belonged just to us. Something that no one else could ever take away. On the other hand, we had to return to reality at some point and it would also be nice to settle into each other's daily lives.

We had returned from a day on the beach and decided to go out to dinner. I had showered and was putting on make-up when I heard a knock at the door. I frowned, wondering who could be knocking, when I heard Ranger pad across the floor to open the door. A moment later, I went running when I heard a very angry, "What the fuck is this?"

I rushed out to see a very angry Joe Morelli try to take a swing at Ranger. Ranger easily grabbed his arm and pushed him into the wall as I stood there stunned. When I found my voice, I said, "Joe, what the hell are you doing?"

With his hand pushed up between his shoulder blades, Joe was in pain, but still managed to look at me and narrow his eyes. "What do you mean what am I doing? What the hell are YOU doing here with him?"

I took a deep breath and said, "Joe, I'm sorry you had to find out this way, but I love Ranger. We finally figured some things out and we're together now."

Ranger looked to be enjoying himself a little too much, so I asked him to let Joe go. I heard him growl "Be careful" to Joe and he released him but remained standing beside him.

Joe stood there, rubbing his arm and shooting looks and Ranger and I. I actually felt hopeful that he might just leave. I should've known better.

Joe locked eyes with me and said, "You know, Cupcake, if I'd known you were running around like a whore behind my back, I would've dumped you a long time ago."

I didn't have a chance to respond because Ranger had already landed an uppercut to Joe's jaw and Joe was out cold.

I stood there with my mouth open and then started giggling like a crazy person. Ranger raised an eyebrow.

Continuing to giggle, I said, "Well, at least that conversations over."

Ranger only shook his head. "Babe."


End file.
